Stabilization of water-based drilling cuttings using an alkali-activated GGBS–FA-based composite binder for road construction

Water-based drilling cuttings (WBDC) are generated in large quantities during oil and gas development, but their reuse in road construction is restricted by insufficient bearing capacity, moisture sensitivity, and potential contaminant release. This study developed an alkali-activated GGBS-FA-based composite binder containing cement and sodium silicate to stabilize WBDC for road construction. The optimized binder was evaluated in terms of mechanical properties, water stability, wet-dry and freeze-thaw durability, environmental performance, and microstructural characteristics. At a total binder dosage of 15%, the stabilized WBDC achieved a 28d unconfined compressive strength of 10.17 MPa, a splitting tensile strength of 1.46 MPa, and a water stability coefficient of 94.44%. After nine wet-dry and freeze-thaw cycles, the corresponding strength retention ratios were 97.06% and 87.25%, respectively. Stabilization reduced the leachate chemical oxygen demand from 260 to 4 mg/L. SEM-EDS observations showed that products with gel-like and needle-like morphologies progressively coated and connected WBDC particles and improved matrix continuity. The results provide a low-energy route for the large-volume utilization of WBDC and indicate that a 15% binder dosage provides a practical balance between engineering performance and binder consumption for road construction.